Use serializer functions to encode Cardano data structures into formats suitable for on-chain storage or transmission. These utilities convert scripts into addresses and data objects into their serialized representations.

Overview

Serialization is essential for smart contract development. It encodes data structures into formats that can be stored on-chain or transmitted across the network. MeshJS provides serializers for:

Native scripts (multisig, time-locked)
Plutus scripts (smart contracts)
Address objects (payment and stake credentials)

Quick Start

import { serializePlutusScript, PlutusScript } from "@meshsdk/core";

const script: PlutusScript = {
  code: "5906f4010100...",
  version: "V2",
};

const address = serializePlutusScript(script);

serializeNativeScript

Convert a native script into a bech32 address and script CBOR.

Function Signature

serializeNativeScript(
  nativeScript: NativeScript,
  networkId?: number,
  stakeCredentialHash?: string
): { address: string; scriptCbor: string }

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`nativeScript`	`NativeScript`	Yes	The native script object to serialize
`networkId`	`number`	No	Network ID (`0` for testnet, `1` for mainnet). Defaults to `0`
`stakeCredentialHash`	`string`	No	Optional stake credential hash for the address

Returns

Property	Type	Description
`address`	`string`	The bech32 script address
`scriptCbor`	`string`	The script in CBOR format

Example

import {
  serializeNativeScript,
  deserializeAddress,
  NativeScript,
} from "@meshsdk/core";

// Get the public key hash from an address
const { pubKeyHash: keyHash } = deserializeAddress(
  "addr_test1qpvx0sacufuypa2k4sngk7q40zc5c4npl337uusdh64kv0uafhxhu32dys6pvn6wlw8dav6cmp4pmtv7cc3yel9uu0nq93swx9"
);

// Create a time-locked multisig script
const nativeScript: NativeScript = {
  type: "all",
  scripts: [
    {
      type: "before",
      slot: "99999999",
    },
    {
      type: "sig",
      keyHash: keyHash,
    },
  ],
};

// Serialize to get address and CBOR
const { address, scriptCbor } = serializeNativeScript(nativeScript);

console.log("Script Address:", address);
console.log("Script CBOR:", scriptCbor);

Native Script Types

The NativeScript type supports these script types:

Type	Description	Required Fields
`sig`	Requires a signature from a key	`keyHash`
`all`	Requires all scripts to be satisfied	`scripts`
`any`	Requires any one script to be satisfied	`scripts`
`atLeast`	Requires at least N scripts to be satisfied	`required`, `scripts`
`before`	Valid before a slot	`slot`
`after`	Valid after a slot	`slot`

serializePlutusScript

Convert a Plutus script into a bech32 address.

Function Signature

serializePlutusScript(
  plutusScript: PlutusScript,
  networkId?: number,
  stakeCredentialHash?: string
): string

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`plutusScript`	`PlutusScript`	Yes	The Plutus script object to serialize
`networkId`	`number`	No	Network ID (`0` for testnet, `1` for mainnet). Defaults to `0`
`stakeCredentialHash`	`string`	No	Optional stake credential hash for the address

Returns

Type	Description
`string`	The bech32 script address

Example

import { serializePlutusScript, PlutusScript } from "@meshsdk/core";

const plutusScript: PlutusScript = {
  code: "5906f4010100323232323232...", // Your compiled Plutus script
  version: "V2",
};

// Get the script address on testnet
const address = serializePlutusScript(plutusScript, 0);
console.log("Script Address:", address);

// Get the script address on mainnet with stake credential
const mainnetAddress = serializePlutusScript(
  plutusScript,
  1,
  "9e8a6e5fcbbb5b84deefc71d7cb6319a3da9cc3d19765efb303647ef"
);
console.log("Mainnet Address:", mainnetAddress);

PlutusScript Type

interface PlutusScript {
  code: string;    // The compiled script CBOR
  version: string; // "V1", "V2", or "V3"
}

serializeAddressObj

Convert a Cardano data address object into a bech32 address string.

Function Signature

serializeAddressObj(
  address: PubKeyAddress | ScriptAddress,
  networkId?: number
): string

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`address`	`PubKeyAddress \| ScriptAddress`	Yes	The address object in Cardano data format
`networkId`	`number`	No	Network ID (`0` for testnet, `1` for mainnet). Defaults to `0`

Returns

Type	Description
`string`	The bech32 address

Example

import { pubKeyAddress, serializeAddressObj } from "@meshsdk/core";

// Create a public key address object
const address = pubKeyAddress(
  "aa048e4cc8a1e67e1d97ffbd4be614388014cbc2b2451527202943b6",
  "9d4dcd7e454d2434164f4efb8edeb358d86a1dad9ec6224cfcbce3e6"
);

// Serialize to bech32 on mainnet
const bech32Address = serializeAddressObj(address, 1);
console.log("Bech32 Address:", bech32Address);

pubKeyAddress

Create a public key address object for use with serializeAddressObj.

Function Signature

pubKeyAddress(
  bytes: string,
  stakeCredential?: string,
  isStakeScriptCredential?: boolean
): PubKeyAddress

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`bytes`	`string`	Yes	The payment key hash (56 hex characters)
`stakeCredential`	`string`	No	The stake credential hash
`isStakeScriptCredential`	`boolean`	No	Whether the stake credential is a script. Defaults to `false`

Returns

Type	Description
`PubKeyAddress`	The address object in Cardano data format

Example

import { pubKeyAddress, serializeAddressObj } from "@meshsdk/core";

// Enterprise address (no stake key)
const enterpriseAddress = pubKeyAddress(
  "aa048e4cc8a1e67e1d97ffbd4be614388014cbc2b2451527202943b6"
);

// Base address (with stake key)
const baseAddress = pubKeyAddress(
  "aa048e4cc8a1e67e1d97ffbd4be614388014cbc2b2451527202943b6",
  "9d4dcd7e454d2434164f4efb8edeb358d86a1dad9ec6224cfcbce3e6"
);

console.log(serializeAddressObj(enterpriseAddress, 0));
console.log(serializeAddressObj(baseAddress, 0));

scriptAddress

Create a script address object for use with serializeAddressObj.

Function Signature

scriptAddress(
  bytes: string,
  stakeCredential?: string,
  isStakeScriptCredential?: boolean
): ScriptAddress

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`bytes`	`string`	Yes	The script hash (56 hex characters)
`stakeCredential`	`string`	No	The stake credential hash
`isStakeScriptCredential`	`boolean`	No	Whether the stake credential is a script. Defaults to `false`

Returns

Type	Description
`ScriptAddress`	The address object in Cardano data format

Example

import { scriptAddress, serializeAddressObj } from "@meshsdk/core";

// Script address with stake credential
const address = scriptAddress(
  "5867c3b8e27840f556ac268b781578b14c5661fc63ee720dbeab663f",
  "9d4dcd7e454d2434164f4efb8edeb358d86a1dad9ec6224cfcbce3e6"
);

const bech32 = serializeAddressObj(address, 0);
console.log("Script Address:", bech32);

Complete Example

This example demonstrates a complete workflow for serializing different script types:

import {
  serializeNativeScript,
  serializePlutusScript,
  pubKeyAddress,
  scriptAddress,
  serializeAddressObj,
  deserializeAddress,
  NativeScript,
  PlutusScript,
} from "@meshsdk/core";

// 1. Serialize a Native Script
const { pubKeyHash } = deserializeAddress(
  "addr_test1qpvx0sacufuypa2k4sngk7q40zc5c4npl337uusdh64kv0uafhxhu32dys6pvn6wlw8dav6cmp4pmtv7cc3yel9uu0nq93swx9"
);

const nativeScript: NativeScript = {
  type: "all",
  scripts: [
    { type: "sig", keyHash: pubKeyHash },
    { type: "after", slot: "1000000" },
  ],
};

const { address: nativeAddress, scriptCbor } = serializeNativeScript(nativeScript, 0);
console.log("Native Script Address:", nativeAddress);

// 2. Serialize a Plutus Script
const plutusScript: PlutusScript = {
  code: "5906f4010100...",
  version: "V2",
};

const plutusAddress = serializePlutusScript(plutusScript, 0);
console.log("Plutus Script Address:", plutusAddress);

// 3. Serialize Address Objects
const pkAddress = pubKeyAddress(
  "aa048e4cc8a1e67e1d97ffbd4be614388014cbc2b2451527202943b6",
  "9d4dcd7e454d2434164f4efb8edeb358d86a1dad9ec6224cfcbce3e6"
);
console.log("Public Key Address:", serializeAddressObj(pkAddress, 1));

const scAddress = scriptAddress(
  "5867c3b8e27840f556ac268b781578b14c5661fc63ee720dbeab663f"
);
console.log("Script Address:", serializeAddressObj(scAddress, 0));

Troubleshooting

Address returns wrong network prefix

Verify you are passing the correct networkId parameter. Use 0 for testnet (addr_test1...) and 1 for mainnet (addr1...).

Invalid script CBOR error

Ensure your Plutus script code is valid CBOR hex. The code should be the raw compiled output from your Plutus or Aiken compiler.

Native script serialization fails

Check that all required fields are present for each script type. For example, sig scripts require a keyHash, and atLeast scripts require both required and scripts fields.

Deserializers - Parse serialized data back into objects
Resolvers - Convert between hash formats
Blueprints - Work with parameterized scripts

Serializers

Overview

Quick Start

serializeNativeScript

Function Signature

Parameters

Returns

Example

Native Script Types

serializePlutusScript

Function Signature

Parameters

Returns

Example

PlutusScript Type

serializeAddressObj

Function Signature

Parameters

Returns

Example

pubKeyAddress

Function Signature

Parameters

Returns

Example

scriptAddress

Function Signature

Parameters

Returns

Example

Complete Example

Troubleshooting

Address returns wrong network prefix

Invalid script CBOR error

Native script serialization fails

On this page